Caring Is a Zero Sum Game

Caring is a zero sum game, or so some guy in the comment section said.

Every kilowatt of brainpower we spend on the trivial bread and circuses in the world means less attention to the tiny lessons that you know are good for you. Ever tried to care about two things at once? Don’t bother because it can’t be done.

For every atom of attention you waste seeing white and gold or blue and black in that dress, you deprive us of a tear for nine murdered churchgoers. Whenever you speak for justice over underinflated footballs, another Syrian child collapses in a cloud of mustard gas. You cannot care about both at once. The math is impossible and you deserve every scolding you get that echoes off Internet walls.

What a world this would be, they say, if we never lifted our head from studying tragedy to rest our minds with the trivial. And how little tragedy there would be if all that condescending online self-righteousness could power even the smallest change.